


Until I met You

by cali_dreaminnn



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: F/M, Violence in Later Chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-03-01
Updated: 2013-03-01
Packaged: 2017-12-04 01:11:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 22,038
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/704766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cali_dreaminnn/pseuds/cali_dreaminnn





	1. Chapter 1

Louis POV  
“Mum, I’ve told you... I don’t want you to set me up with another one of your friends’ brother’s boss’ daughters -or whatever- anymore, I am fine being single right now, and I will find someone when there is someone worth finding,” I said, tired of my mother meddling in my love life, "But Lou, I’ve already made arrangements,” she chided, “Well, say I got the flu or something, anyways, I was going to hang out with the guys tonight, anyways,” I said, grabbing my coat, ignoring my mom’s protests. I decided to walk to Liam’s house where we were all meeting up, seeing as it was only a few blocks from where I lived.  
I was walking along, lost in my own little world. Just last year we were a barely known band, struggling to get noticed, and then we somehow spring boarded into popularity. It was truly unreal. Soon enough, I made it to Liam’s house where I heard yelling. I let myself in, because well, that’s what we did in each other’s house, “God Liam, I am sick of this, you put everything before our relationship, work, your stupid friends, you even put chores ahead of me,” Danielle, Liam’s girlfriend of a little over a year yelled, “What do you expect me to do, I have made commitments and I fully intend to keep them,” he said, trying to keep a level head, but she was sure pushing his buttons, “Well then, I’m done.” she stated, “What?” he asked, “I can’t deal with this anymore, I’m leaving, we’re done,” she said, grabbing her stuff, “But Danielle...” he began, but catching the deadly look she was throwing his way, he held his tongue. She pushed past me and left out the door, promptly slamming it behind her. He slumped down on the couch, cradling his face in his hands. He didn’t see me come in, so I knocked on the doorframe of the living room to announce my presence, “Oh, I didn’t hear you come in,” he said, startled, “Yeah I realized that, I came in during Danielle’s little tangent,” I explained, he sighed, “C’mon dude, you deserve someone who will treat you better than her. She knew full well what she was getting herself into when you two started going out, and now suddenly she complains that you don’t have enough time for you, that is cold, man,” I said, putting a hand on his shoulder, “I know, there was just something in me hoping that things would change, but they haven’t, why don’t we go out when the rest of the guys get here, change up our guys night a little,” he suggested, “Sounds good,” I said, as if on cue, the other three guys turned up.

Liam POV  
Danielle and I just weren’t meant to be, so it was time to get back out there and get over her. Our guys night out would work to that advantage, the only problem was that now we were ‘famous’ we could never tell who was being real with us, which made it really hard. We arrived at a bar, Hog’s Head. Quite a strange name for a bar, but I’ve heard nothing but good things about it, so I decided that’s where we’d go tonight. We all made our way to the bar first to get a drink before we did anything else. This was actually the first time we had off in a while, and we chose to enjoy it together, oddly enough, which may have been what Danielle’s issue, but I wasn’t supposed to be thinking about her tonight, “What can I get you?” the bartender asked, “The strongest thing you have,” I said, “Rough night?” she guessed, “How could you tell?” I challenged, “That’s the only time I ever get that order,” she said, swiftly handing me my drink. Everyone else dispersed throughout the place after getting their drink, save for Harry, who was still chatting up the bartender.

Niall POV  
This bar that Liam picked out seemed alright enough, I was able to get my pint, so I was happy, or content I suppose. This was a rather small establishment, but there was live entertainment and a pool table, I challenged Lou to a game. It was nice to just kick back and spend the day relaxing with four of your best friends. I was going to take a plane out to Ireland in the morning, stop by home before we were off on another endeavor as One Direction. It’s not that I don’t love my job, but we were hardly home enough anymore, and that was a bummer.

Harry POV  
“I told you, I am not interested,” the bartender ‘Jersey’ claimed, “C’mon, one drink won’t hurt,” I pleaded, “Trust me, it’s never just one drink, I’ve heard that line used on every mindless romantic looking for a little fun,” she rolled her eyes, disgusted, “What about coffee?” I suggested, “Is that what it’ll take for you to leave me alone?” she asked, obviously annoyed, “Harry, leave that poor girl alone,” Liam admonished, “It’s just a little harmless banter,” Louis stuck up for me, slightly buzzed, “Yes,” I said to Jersey, “I close at two,” she said, and with that, I left, an accomplished smile on my face.

Zayn POV  
It appears as if Harry may have been looking for more than just a quick lay tonight, it has definitely been awhile since he put any effort in to get a girl, so maybe he saw something in her, and maybe a little bit of a chase would be good for him. Thanks to our celebrity status, we had people throwing themselves at us left and right, it was actually refreshing to find someone like that. But none of us were really looking for a girlfriend right now, our job made it all but impossible for us to really settle down at all, and Liam’s relationship with Danielle was a perfect example of that, so the fact that Harry wanted to have a little harmless fun couldn’t be all that bad.

Jersey POV  
It was a quarter after two when I finally managed to get the last few drunkards out of the bar so I could finally close up. Thanks to my coffee ‘date’ I would have to come in earlier to clean up before opening up again later. Harry Styles was definitely something, most people would give up after being rejected more than two or three times, so the least I could say was that he was persistent, but way too cocky for me. I preferred to be alone, that was all there was to it.  
I grabbed my coat, went out and locked up, and right as I turned around, he was there, “Are you ready to go?” he asked, “As ready as I will ever be,” I sighed, feeling as though I was selling my soul rather than getting coffee with a guy. The cafe we were going to was only a few short blocks from the bar, so we just walked.  
Normally I would protest people buying things for me, but as we got to the cafe, I realized that I had no money on me, “So tell me a little about yourself,” Harry said, making small talk, “There isn’t much to tell, my name is Jersey, I live here in London, I own a bar, and whenever I find the time, I go to school,” I sighed, trying not to give away too much information, “Oh, what is your major?” he asked, “Undecided, that’s what it has been for the past year, and I still don’t know what I want to do with my life,” I explained, “I see, nothing wrong with that,” he said, “So, what about yourself, Styles,” I asked, “I’m from Holmes- Chapel, Cheshire, I have an older sister named Gemma, my parents are divorced, and I currently live at home with my mom and stepdad, but I am buying a flat with Louis, me and the guys are on break for roughly the next three weeks, but we aren’t really doing much until the New Year, but yeah, that’s about it,” he said, “So you are all from around the UK?” I asked, remembering something I read that said one of the members were from Ireland, I think it was the blonde one, “No, Niall is from Ireland,” he stated, so I was right, “He is actually leaving in the morning to spend a week or so with his family,” he explained, “Oh cool, my cousin is taking a trip to Ireland, I think she too is leaving tomorrow,” I said, “Where is your cousin from?” he asked, “Here, well we both are actually from the United States, New Jersey specifically, her sister too.” I said, “Is that were your name comes from?” he asked, “What was your first clue?” I countered, “I was just asking, Ms. Defensive,” he chuckled, “Actually, that was sarcasm,” I said as someone brought by our coffee and the bagel that Harry must have also ordered, “Want some?” he offered, I suppose trying to be gentlemanly, but I declined, “No, I am just fine with coffee,” I said.  
We continued talking idly, and then finally I decided that it was time to go home, “Can I walk you there, London gets pretty shady at night,” he explained, “If it helps you sleep at night, Styles,” I shrugged. I led him to my apartment, which was in the more rundown part of London, but it was what I could afford, barely, “Nice place,” he commented, “Shut up,” I said, leading him up to my apartment. It was then that I saw my eviction notice, ripping it from my door hopefully Harry saw, opening the door for him, only to have him ‘attacked’ by my dog, Moose.

Harry POV  
I wouldn’t admit it, but the place Jersey lived in was, well a dump. It was the middle of November and the only thing keeping the windows closed were pieces of plastic taped over them. I had this little lab puppy jumping all over me, “That is Moose,” she said, throwing her coat on her couch, which was falling apart, “Aren’t you worried about him having identity confusion and growing antlers?” I asked, she gave me a dirty look, “So, I’m home, I’m safe, you can go now if you’d like,” she said, standing awkwardly in the middle of her dilapidated apartment.


	2. Chapter 2

Niall POV  
I was actually curious to hear how Harry’s little date went, but I figured he wouldn’t appreciate me calling him at four in the morning, so I made sure I was all packed, and left Zayn’s house quietly. Zayn graciously offered to let me stay over while I was staying in the UK, but the dude liked his sleep, so it was rather in my best interest not to disturb it.  
I made it through baggage easily enough, and got to my plane. I was searching for my seat when I finally found it, on the other side of this girl who was reading a rather large book with her feet propped up on the seat in front of her, blocking the path to my seat “Um, excuse me, but you are kind of blocking my seat,” I stated “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said, quickly moving her feet, “Don’t worry about it, love,” I smiled, squeezing past her to my seat, “So, what’s your name, I’m Niall,” I said, “Holly,” she replied, rather quietly, “Well Holly, what are you reading?” I asked, eyeing her large book again, “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince,” she responded, “Oh, it any good?” I asked, trying to keep the conversation going, “Yeah, have you read any of the series?” she replied, her interest sparked, “I’m not really much of a reader, not enough pictures in them nowadays,” I joked, she laughed a little, and we talked a little more until the plane took off, then she went back to her book.  
“Oh my God! You are Niall Horan, I am honored to have you on this flight,” the attendant cooed. I rolled my eyes, here we go.

Holly POV  
I was peacefully asleep until I heard the sound of a loud nasally voice freaking out about Niall being on the flight. I knew who he was, I just was raised better than to ambush people, no matter what their status was, “Excuse me, do you mind quieting down a little bit, it’s five a.m. some people are actually trying to sleep,” I said as politely as I could, but I was getting really aggravated with this person, who was now giving me quite the dirty look, “I will kindly ask you to mind your own business,” she barked out, “Miss,” this little boy, the row behind me said softly, trying to get the attention of the attendant, “Little boy, I am in the middle of a conversation,” she said, snidely to the boy, promptly to be thrown up on by the poor little boy. The attendant, stormed off, finally allowing the poor boy to run to the plane’s bathroom. I turned to face Niall, who had his face in his hands trying to muffle his laughter, “I’m glad to see that it wasn’t only me who found that the slightest bit amusing,” I stated, he nodded, still in a fit of hysterics.  
“So what do you plan to do in Ireland?” I eventually asked Niall, “I am visiting my family for the next little while,” he said, “And yourself?” “I don’t quite know, I just really like traveling and the chance presented itself to me, so I took it. I really like plane rides,” I said, he laughed, “So you are taking a trip to Ireland solely for the plane ride?” he chuckled, “Pretty much, plus Ireland seems like a fun place to go,” I said, “If you know where to go, that is,” he stated, “Well, maybe you could show me around?” I asked, “I’d love to,” he smile. We continued talking for the rest of the flight, much to the dismay of anyone who was previously trying to sleep.

Louis POV  
I got up and went for a walk soon after waking up; for fear that my mom would bring up yesterday’s conversation. Harry was probably still asleep from his late night rendezvous with that bartender from last night, and Zayn probably was still asleep too, for he was such a late sleeper. Liam was doing something with his dad today, and Niall was either on his way to Ireland, or already there; I figured he was still on his way because he usually sent us all a text letting us know that he didn’t die a cruel, painful death, so for now I was all by myself. I wasn’t watching where I was going, so I ran right into someone, lunging to catch her right before she fell, “I am sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going,” she rushed, as if I were going to hit her or something, “It’s alright love, I wasn’t watching where I was going either, no harm done,” I assured her, looking at her face for the first time. She had wavy blonde hair and sparkling hazel eyes, marred by a bruise surrounding her right eye, “That is quite a black eye you have,” I commented, “Yeah, whoever said softball wasn’t a contact sport was clearly wrong, that ball made great contact with my eye,” she joked, I laughed, “I guess so,” I said, “Taylor,” she introduced, sticking out her hand for me to shake, “Louis,” I replied, taking her small hand in my own, “So what are you up to this fine, freezing cold, morning?” she asked, socially, my stomach growled, “You know, I might just go get something to eat,” I said, and we both laughed, “Care to join?” I offered, “Sure, I’d love to,” she said after a moment of thought.

Taylor POV  
Austin would be furious if he found out that I was going to get breakfast without his permission, with a guy no better; but it was a harmless invitation, and a little time away from home could do me some good, or be the untimely death of me. Something about the genuine concern Louis gave for what happened to my eye made me want to tell him everything, but for his safety; and my own, I knew I couldn’t tell him; I couldn’t tell anyone, I was alone in life, and I hated it.

Liam POV  
I was in for a day for of super fun, father- son time. The only problem was that I was hugely hung over from the pity party that I threw for myself after the guys left last night, but I couldn’t cancel on my dad, we had this thing planned for weeks. So I was in the car on the way to Faerie Lake, the place I haven’t been since I was about 13 or so, but I would have fun, even if it killed me.


	3. Chapter 3

Harry POV  
I woke up surprisingly to no hangover... Is it bad that I was expecting one? I then remembered how I spent my night, and I became even more okay with the fact that I didn’t have a hangover. I turned my phone on to find a call from Louis telling me to call him, so I did just that, “Hello,” he answered, “You told me to call you,” I said, sleepily, “Oh yeah, I’m at the cafe on the corner of Fifth and Third, you should get up and come here,” he said, “Alright, I will be there in a few,” I said hanging up.  
It turns out the place Louis was at was the cafe that Jersey and I had coffee at just a few hours ago. I walked in to find him in a booth with a girl that I was pretty sure I didn’t know, “Hey,” I said, walking up to the two of them. Yup, I definitely didn’t know this girl, “Hey Harry, this is Taylor, I ran into her earlier, quite literally,” he and the other girl laughed, “Nice to meet you,” I said, shaking her hand, “Is he always this cockily charming?” she asked Louis, I raised my eyebrows, “No offense,” she continued, noticing my eyes on her, “Oh it’s alright, and yes, I am always this cockily charming,” I laughed, liking how well this girl would fit in with the rest of us, “So how did your little date thing go with bartender girl?” Louis asked, taking a drink of his coffee, “Fine, we got coffee, I walked her home, I went home,” I said, smiling as the waitress from earlier brought me my own cup of coffee, “Thank you,” I said politely, “That’s it?” he asked as she left, “That’s it,” I repeated, “Harry Styles, are you sick, you usually get more out of things like that,” Louis said, “She didn’t want anything more, so I respected that,” I said, he snorted, “I think that’s sweet,” Taylor approved, I smiled and Louis rolled his eyes, “Did you at least get her number?” he asked, I shook my head, “No,” I said, “I think you are losing your touch, Styles,” he said, it was my turn to roll my eyes, “It’s not always about getting it in, Louis,” “Yeah, you are definitely losing your touch,” Taylor got a phone call and walked off for a moment, “So did you get her number or anything,” I said, turning the tables, he shook his head, “Hypocrite,” I muttered as she came back, “That was my dad, he wants me home,” she said, almost panicked, “I’ll walk you,” Louis offered, “You can take my car, I am going to go check in on Jersey,” I said, handing my keys to Louis, leaving money for all of our drinks and leaving.

Zayn POV  
I woke up to find that it was already past one in the afternoon, but I felt amazingly refreshed, then again I didn’t drink all that much the night before. I got up and stretched the blinking light on my phone catching my eye, signaling that I had a message. In reality I had a few, three from Louis, one from Harry. The first one was him telling me to go to some cafe, the second one said that he was leaving said cafe, the third one was something about getting my lazy self out of bed and coming to his house to entertain him. Harry’s was about meeting him and Louis at the cafe; sent in between Louis’ first and second text. I decided to get up and head over to Louis’s house, hoping I could steal some food from his house, I was starving.

Jersey POV  
It was times like these, when I was left to clean up the whole bar that was thoroughly trashed from last night, and waiting for a delivery, as well as being dead tired from missing two hours of sleep, that I really wished that I had more help, but realized again that I couldn’t afford to pay anyone else. I was sweeping up when I felt a presence in the bar with me, I turned to see Harry, “Just when I was wondering if I’d ever see you again,” I said, “I was just checking in on you,” he admitted, “Since when do I need looking after, Styles?” I challenged, “Well... I...” he stuttered, “I told you that it’s never just one drink,” I smirked, he rolled his eyes, “I was actually just passing by after coffee with my friend, he kind of all but stole my keys to take some girl he met off somewhere... But now that I’m here; could you use some help?” he offered, I rolled my eyes, not too sure if I believed his little story, but I wasn’t about to pass up some free help, “Uh... sure,” I said, my phone rang, “If you could continue sweeping while I take this... Um, that’d be awesome,” I said, handing him the broom, “Hello,” I answered, “Hello Ms. Martinez, this is Matthew Wilder from Key Bank International, I am calling to inform you that you are behind on your payment for your bar and are facing foreclosure,” the man told me, “You can’t do that,” I said, “Please don’t do this to me,” I begged, “You have until the end of the month to cover your overdue payments, the total is $10,429,” he said, “Okay, I will have the money by then,” I sighed, rubbing a hand down my face, “Have a nice day,” he said, I hung up, “Is everything okay?” Harry asked, “Yeah, can you just go?” I asked, “What’s wrong?” he asked, “Dude, I told you before, I am not interested, can you please just leave!” I demanded, he left without another word, leaving something on the bar as he walked out with his coat. I promptly fell to the ground, yelling out a cry over how I could have let myself sink down so low. I straightened myself up just in time to accept my shipment.

Peyton POV  
I had finished with an all day volleyball clinic, I was freshly showered, and I was ready to do something tonight. I couldn’t hang out with Holly, seeing as she was sort of in another country, so I called Nicki up to see if she wanted to do something tonight, “Hello,” she answered, “Hey, what are you doing right now?” I asked, “I’m at the bar, you can come down if you want, I could use some company,” she sighed, “I will be right there hun, you can tell me everything when I get there,” I said, “Thanks,” she said as we both hung up.


	4. Chapter 4

Liam POV  
After a long day of fishing, my dad declared our father- son day over. I went over to Louis’ because that was apparently where the rest of the guys were hanging out. Just as I got there, Louis received a call from Harry, apparently he was rather upset, and in need of a ride; so we all piled into his car and headed out to get him.

Peyton POV  
I drove to the Hog’s Head, and despite the grotesque name, Nicki did a good job at the upkeep. I let myself in to find my cousin absently cleaning the beer mugs, “We aren’t open yet,” she muttered, “I was supposed to meet someone here,” I said, smirking as she turned to face me, a smile dawned her face as she ran to hug me, “Now, what’s the matter?” I asked, holding her back at arm’s length, “I am being evicted and this place is facing foreclosure, I just don’t know what to do,” she sighed, “How much do you need,” I offered, “No, I am not borrowing money from you, I would never be able to pay you back,” she stated, “You’re family, you’ve already paid me back by being in my life,” I replied, “I doubt you have eleven grand sitting around,” she rebuked, “Well technically, I do...” I trailed off, “No, I will not let you dip into your college fund to save my butt... Again,” she refused, “I will think of something,” on the bar, there was a slip of paper, “What’s this?” I asked, picking it up, “I don’t know, read it,” she replied:

Jersey,  
If you ever need me, here’s my number...  
493-2647  
-Styles

“Who is ‘Styles’?” I asked, holding up the napkin, “Just some guy,” she sighed, “Well, ‘Just some guy’, left you his number,” I said, she grabbed the napkin, crumpling it up and tossing it, just missing the trashcan as she went down to the cellar. I picked it up, pocketing it. Maybe I couldn’t get through her, but maybe this ‘Styles’ guy could.

Louis POV  
I pulled over to the side of the road when I saw Harry walking down the street, about a block or two from the bar, “Hey man, hop in,” I said, rolling down the window. He barely looked up, slowly making his way to the passenger door, “What’s up, mate?” I asked, Liam and Zayn leaning forward in their seats to find out what had upset the youngest member of our band, “So I went back to the bar, helped her clean up while she took a phone call. Before the phone call, she was totally fine, in a good mood even, but after the phone call she was really pissed off, and she kicked me out and I just don’t understand it,” he said, a hurt expression crossing his features, “You have to take into account that she may have some things that she is facing that you don’t know about,” Liam said from the back seat, “I know, and I want to help her,” he stated, “It’s not one of those things where I am trying to get this girl to fall for me,” he buried his face in his hands, “We know, mate; but unfortunately at this point, all you can do is offer your help, and wait for her to decide to take it. Try and let her warm up to you, you may want to help, but you can’t come on too strong,” I said, glancing at him before directing my eyes back to the road, “Okay,” he sighed.

Holly POV  
Niall had shown me around some of his favorite places in Dublin, we got a quick bite to eat, and then he showed me to my hotel. Once I got there, I flopped down on the bed, sending my cousin a quick message to say that I got in safely. Before I knew it, my eyes were drooping and in the next moment, I was asleep.

Liam POV  
I really hated seeing Harry this out of sorts, but there wasn’t really much any of the guys our I could do to lift his mood, he was genuinely worried about this girl, which was really good, but at the same time kind of sad, because she wouldn’t let him in, and all he could do was wait for her to change her mind. He was currently sitting in solitude, watching his phone as if waiting for a call or a text, “Harry, you gave her your number, but there is no guarantee that she will even keep it,” his face fell as I said this, “I’m sorry mate, but that’s the truth, the best thing you can do is continue on with your life,” I patted him on the shoulder as he struggled to give me a smile, “Thanks, Li,” he said with sincerity, despite the frown on his face as he pocketed his phone.  
We were watching a football game on the television when I got a phone call, “Hello,” I answered, “Liam, it’s Danielle, I am at the house, but it’s locked, will you come open it so I can get my stuff,” she asked, “Yeah,” I sighed, “I will be right over,” “Who was that?” Zayn asked, “Danielle, she needs me to unlock the house so she can get her stuff,” I said, getting up from the couch and grabbing my coat, “You want us to come too, in case it gets ugly,” Harry offered, “No, it would probably go smoother without you guys, but thanks,” I smiled, walking out the door.  
I made it to my flat with a sigh, “Here we go,” I breathed to myself as I got out of my car, walking up the pathway to where Danielle was waiting, tapping her foot impatiently, “About time you got here,” she said, “I was at Louis’, I got here as soon as I could,” I said, fighting to keep a level head, “Well, I have plans, so let’s get this going,” she rushed me as I put the key in the lock, “Listen, you called me here, interrupting my plans with my friends to get your stuff, the least you can do is show a little bit of patience, and a little gratitude,” I said, not about to get my hopes up, “Fine, let me try this. Thank you for blowing me off for your stupid friends so I can finally live my life again,” she said with a phony sweet smile on her face. It was bound to be a long evening.  
“You know you can leave me here, I won’t destroy your precious stuff while you choose your friends over me again,” she said, testing my patience, while she wandered around the foyer and living room, collecting her belongings in a box, “No, it’s fine, I’m already here, might as well stay,” I sighed, “That’s right, you can’t get enough of me,” she snickered, I chose not to answer, hoping she would be fast with this.


	5. Chapter 5

Zayn POV  
Emotions do the craziest of things to relationships, but the lack of them leaves it empty. It is only once a balance is found that a relationship can be complete, and it comes down to the smallest of things to make or break it. From simply sitting back and watching the boys, I have found myself content with staying single. It wouldn’t be fair for either involved with my career; not that I was totally opposed to settling down with someone, but at this point in my career, it didn’t seem like the best option.

Jersey POV  
It was thirty minutes from closing when I remembered that Peyton had stolen my phone to make a call because hers had died, and at the moment I had lost track of her, but then I saw her on the dance floor in front of the stage, dancing with a guy who I now remembered bought her a drink. I would just get it back later.  
I stopped Peyton from going home with that guy, because I could vouch for the fact that he was a total sleaze, the only reason I let him get her a drink was that I was able to watch to make sure he didn’t put anything in it. I took her keys from her pocket and helped her to her car after I cleaned and locked up. I drove her home, then walked the couple blocks to my apartment from hers. Once I was in the privacy of my apartment, curled up with Moose, that I checked my phone for any messages. I had a voicemail, but no other messages, I looked at my call history and saw that Peyton had not even made a call, strange... What did she need my phone for then? I shook off the question as I listened to my voicemail, “Hey Jersey, it’s Arizona. I was just calling to see how you were doing. I met a guy today that made me forget that there was ever anything wrong with my life; even if it was just for an hour, not that I can really do anything about it, but call me back when you get this, and we can talk and stuff. Bye, babe,” the voicemail said. I dialed her number back, “Hello,” I said, when I heard someone pick up, “Hey there, how is everything?” she asked, “I have definitely had better days,” I sighed, “Spill,” she stated, “I am being evicted and the bank is taking the bar back unless I can get my hands on eleven grand; but I don’t really want to think about that right now. You said you met a guy today?” I changed the subject, “We will figure something out, and yeah I did, I actually ran right into him, and it’s super crazy to say this, but I suddenly believe in love at first sight,” she sighed, dreamily, “That’s great to hear. I met a guy that seems to really want to help me,” I began, “Did you tell him?” she interrupted, “No, he just seems to sense that my life sucks; but I pushed him away. I can’t let another person in... They just keep letting me down,” I said, “I’ve never let you down, have I?” she asked, “No, of course not. You have been my best friend since like forever, you could never let me down; but the only people I have in my life is you and my cousins, and I have gotten through life so far with only you three in my life, so why can’t it work now?” I asked, rhetorically, “I would say it’s not always a bad thing to let people in, but so far I have been proven wrong... So, yeah...” she sighed. We moved onto different subjects and just talked for awhile just like best friends do, “What the hell are you still doing up?” I heard him demand from the other line, “I was just talking to my mom, she’s in Wisconsin, there is a six hour difference,” she explained, panicked. I wasn’t all that worried for I knew that she had my number saved in her phone as mom, “Hey mom, I better go. I have practice early in the morning, so I should get some sleep,” she said, putting a thick lie for her cover up, “Be safe,” I said right before she hurriedly hung up. Stay safe. 

Niall POV  
Today has just been crazy, in the best way possible, but at the same time I was so glad to be home. My family was ecstatic to have me home and I was just as happy to be home. We spent a good couple hours catching up and stuff and then finally I was able to crash in my bed, a smile on my face as I fell into my dreams.

Taylor POV  
I was so relieved that he left me alone last night, I didn’t mean any harm in staying out for so long, I guess I just lost track of time, and I found myself wanting to find another excuse to hang out with him, but it would have to be far away from here. What could I do? He left for the day, but he wanted me home by 10pm at the latest. I liked days like this, where he gave me a bit of free reign. I decided to pay a visit to a certain best friend of mine. I walked to her apartment, ripping up the eviction notice that was taped up on the door, walking in, “I’m home,” I called out. I heard a thud, then a groan, followed by the sound of nails on wood as a precious yellow lab pup came flitting toward me, “Aw, and who are you?” I asked, getting down to knee level to cuddle the adorable creature, “That’s Moose,” Jersey muttered, walking into view, her hair thrown up in a messy bun wearing her plaid pajama bottoms and a tee shirt, “Good morning, sunshine,” I smiled, “It was a good morning, until I ended up on the ground,” she mumbled, “I forgot to ask you what you did for your birthday the other week,” I mentioned, “I bought myself a puppy, then got wasted,” she said, with a morbid laugh, “You should have mentioned something, Austin might have let me out to celebrate with you,” I said, she shrugged, offering me some old coffee, which I took, “He already gives you enough crap on a daily basis, I didn’t want to give him any reason to give you more,” she said, sipping on her coffee, “Speaking of which, can I get a job?” I asked, hopefully, she grimaced, either from the question or the taste of the coffee, “I wouldn’t be able to pay you,” she eventually said, “I don’t mind, I just need some time away from him,” I said, “I’d feel bad,” she insisted, “You need the money more than I do,” I argued, “Won’t he notice if you aren’t bringing any money in?” she asked, “No, my money is my own business,” I assured her, “Are you sure?” she stalled, “I am, also... I kind of want another reason to see that guy from yesterday,” I said, sheepishly, “Do you have his number?” she asked, her interest peaked, “Yeah, he gave it to me last night and we texted for a little bit,” I said, “Awesome, what’s his name?” she asked, “Louis,” I said, “Louis what?” she asked, a strange expression on his face, “I didn’t catch his last name, why?” I asked, she shook her head, “Just wondering,” she claimed, “Now come on, I’ve got someone new to train,” I beamed at her, hugging her, “Thanks so much,” I breathed.


	6. Chapter 6

Holly POV  
I woke up having slept really well the previous night, which was out of the ordinary because I usually found hotel beds extremely uncomfortable. I guess I did so much yesterday that I was totally worn out. I got a message from my cousin saying that she got my message and then got up to get ready for the day, starting out with a quick shower that in all reality wasn’t that quick at all, but then I got dressed and went out to get breakfast.

Peyton POV  
You know it’s the start of a bad day when you wake up with a hangover and don’t even remember coming home. I went to give Nicki a call, only to find that my phone was dead, so I realized that if I wanted to talk to her, I would probably have to go see her. I decided that it would be a good idea to get some aspirin first and wash the scent of alcohol off of my body, and maybe get some food in my system.  
I drove by her apartment to find that she wasn’t there, so my next stop was the bar, where I found her showing her long time friend, Taylor the ropes of bartending, “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” Nicki smiled when she saw me come in, “Yeah, any chance you can tell me what happened last night?” I asked, “You got drunk and danced with this creepy guy, but I saved you before he got the chance to take you home,” she said, “Thanks,” I said, rubbing my eyes, “Sure thing,” she said, “Hey there, Taylor,” I smiled, “Hey Peyton, how’s it going?” she asked, moving her eyes from the drink she was trying to make, “No complaints that do any good,” I said, “That is usually a good thing,” she commented, I nodded, “How is volleyball going?” “Really good, the team this year is killer,” I said, “Solid,” she said, I nodded again, “So you gonna be working here now?” I asked, “Yeah, I need to get away from home more,” she said. I could understand that, her home life wasn’t all that good, “I can respect that,” I said, this time it was her turn to nod, “That’s not the only reason,” Nicki smirked, Taylor blushed, “Shut up,” she muttered, “Can you please tell me what I am missing?” I asked, “Taylor met a guy yesterday,” she smiled, “Oh, because she has such great luck with guys,” I thought, “Awesome,” I said, she gave a small smile, “I know what you are thinking, he is nothing like Austin,” she said, reading my expression, “How are you so sure, Austin seemed like a good guy until he had you,” I said, going against my better judgment and speaking my thoughts, “He is different, I am sure of it. He and some of his friends are coming out tonight, Jersey will be here to keep an eye on me,” she said in complete confidence, “You want me to stick around too, just to be extra sure?” I offered, “Sure,” Taylor smiled, “I could always use some extra help,” Nicki agreed, “Alright,” I agreed. I had been around enough to know enough about serving drinks to be able to offer a hand. I left, letting them both know that I would be back later to help open up. 

Zayn POV  
I found it ironic, each of the guys and I had a different day for our family events, instead of having it all on the same day so we could hang out, but at the same time, it would be nice to spend a little time away from the boys, but for the next few days, I would be going out of town with my family to visit my aunt at her cottage in Northampton, we would be having a little sort of reunion in the next couple of days and it would be good to see the family again; it’s been quite a while.

Harry POV  
It was quite irritating to witness how occupied my mind had become with Jersey, but I just didn’t understand what I had done to put her so out of sorts, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure that it was really something that I had done. I just found myself wanting to know what was wrong and if there was anything I could do to help. I was thinking about that when Louis came into my room, “Is there any chance you want to hang out with me and Taylor tonight?” he asked with an expression that said he was hiding something, “Good morning, it’s nice to see you too, and hi.” I said sarcastically. He rolled his eyes, still waiting for my answer, “I suppose I could clear my schedule, but now I don’t know where I will find the time to stare at my ceiling pondering the meaning of life,” I said, effectively getting under his skin, “You know, most people would go for a simple yes or no answer,” he huffed, “I’m still not sure why you would even bother asking, you usually know what’s going on in my life better than I do,” I said putting my hands behind my head, “Unless there was a reason I wouldn’t want to come,” I said, the answer was in his eyes before he even said a word, “We are kind of hanging out at Hog’s Head,” he said quietly, “Of course it is,” he scoffed, “Maybe she won’t be there,” he said, hopefully.  
It turns out that Louis’ and my hopes were in vain as when we arrived with Liam, Jersey was found behind the bar with Taylor and another girl, “I didn’t know you worked here,” Louis said to her once we reached the bar, “Yeah, today is actually my first day,” she replied, Jersey walked to the back room with the other girl, “Cool,” he said. I walked away as Liam roped me into playing pool with him; I was hoping that Jersey would let me talk to her before the end of the night, but I wasn’t about to get my hopes up.

Louis POV  
Jersey, who had walked away with the other bartender once we walked up, came back after Harry walked away with Liam, “Hey,” I addressed her, “You would be the person that Taylor befriended,” she muttered, “Harry is very confused about what happened the other day,” I stated, “Then why are you talking to me instead of him?” she asked, “Because you kind of walked away when he came up, “We were actually out of clean cups,” she said, matter of factly, motioning to the crates of mugs that she and the other girl had grabbed, “Oh,” I said smartly, “I see that you know my best friend, Jersey,” Taylor said, looking between us, “Yeah, oh this is Peyton,” Jersey said, finally introducing the other girl. I didn’t understand her problem with Harry, she seemed perfectly civilized to me.

Jersey POV  
Louis was right, I was trying to avoid Harry, but I realized how stupid I was being, and once business slowed down, I walked up to him, “I heard you wanted to talk to me,” I said, he nodded, “Yeah, I am kind of confused on what happened the other day,” he admitted, I sat at the table next to us, and he did the same as his other friend went to find Louis, “Listen Styles, I know I acted rather rudely the other day, but I think it is just better for us not to hang around. You are a smart kid, and someone like you just shouldn’t be getting caught up in my mess of a life,” I said, “Whatever it is, I would really like to help,” he said, “It’s not really something that you can help with,” I said, blatantly, he still seemed confused, but accepted the answer as he walked away, leaving the bar with his friends.


	7. Chapter 7

1 week later...  
I woke up to a pounding on my door, getting up to answer the door. At the door was my landlord, Gary, “What can I do for you, sir?” I asked, sleepily, “Cut the crap, Martinez. I either need your payment now, or need you to vacate the apartment,” he said sternly, “I don’t have the money,” I admitted, he sighed, “Then, I am sorry, but I am going to have to kick you out, you have two day,” he stated. I was about to argue, but before I could say another word, Moose ran out of the apartment at full speed, “No, Moose,” I called, maneuvering around Gary to run down the stairs after my puppy, but he was already long gone. I searched for a good half an hour before realizing that I would need to cover more ground if I had any hopes of finding him. I ran my phone was to my ear the moment that I got into my apartment, and Gary was gone.  
I called everyone I could think of as I bundled up to go look for him again; wrapped in a long sleeve shirt, zip up, coat, gloves and a hat. Everyone I tried couldn’t help me; Taylor wasn’t allowed out of the house, Peyton wasn’t answering her phone, and my other cousin was still out of the country, so I was currently scrolling through my contacts to see if there was anyone else to call when I came across a number labeled ‘Styles’. I didn’t remember how it got in my phone, but I pressed call, hoping he was in a generous mood, “Hey, it’s Jersey. I know I said that it wasn’t the best idea for us to hang out, but Moose has run off and I can’t find him, I was wondering if there was any chance you could help me find him. I swear I will lose it if I can’t,” I sighed, hanging up and running down the stairs. With the way I had been treating him, I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t respond.  
I had just made it down the block when my phone rang, “Hello,” I answered, my breath short from running, “Hey, it’s Harry,” was the response, “I just got your call, sorry I wasn’t near my phone,” “It’s fine,” I breathed, “The guys and I are on our way to your apartment, I figured the more people we had to look for him would be better,” he said, “Thank you, you have no idea how much this means to me,” I said, heading back to my apartment to wait for them.

Harry POV  
Once arriving at Jersey’s apartment, we split up to cover more ground. Zayn took off down the left side of her street, Louis and Liam headed down the street that intersected hers by where her apartment was, and her and I took the right side of the street, “I don’t even know why you are helping me. I have been horrible to you,” she sighed, as we looked high and low for her dog, “I told you I wanted to help, and this is me helping,” I stated, she turned to me, “Why do you want to help me so much?” she asked, genuinely confused, “There is just something about you, I can’t exactly place it,” I admitted, she said nothing.  
“Moose,” she called; we had been searching for the past two hours, and the sun was starting to set, but I wanted to find the dog, because he meant a lot to her, “Moose,” I yelled, there was no sound for a moment, but then I heard the sound of a bark. I looked over to Jersey to see that she heard it too, “Moose,” she shouted, we were silent, barely even breathing as we waited for that sound again. Then we heard it, definitely a bark; it continued as we sprinted in the direction of the sound. We finally found him, he had fallen down a manhole. Jersey stepped through the caution signs, “What are you doing?” I asked, “Going to get my dog,” she said, as if it were obvious, “It’s too dangerous. We will call the fire department,” I tried to reason with her, “I don’t care. And there is no way a firefighter is going to come out at 10pm to fetch a dog that has fallen down the well, it’s not high on their priorities... I am going to get my dog before he freezes,” she said, stubbornly. I realized that there was no rationalizing with her, “Then let me go, it’s too dangerous,” I repeat my previous comment, “Nope, this was my fault, I am going to make it right,” she said, stepping down on the wooden makeshift ladder down the manhole, “Be careful,” I said.

Jersey POV  
I found it really difficult to climb down the manhole with my gloves, and the footing wasn’t really good, causing Harry to about have an aneurysm every time I would slip, repeating “Be careful,” like a mantra to the point of annoyance, “Styles, shut up,” I yelled up, he seemed almost offended, but he complied, pulling out his phone to call the others as I finished my descent, slipping and falling about 10 ft onto some soaked platform down below. Moose scampered toward me, licking my face as he reached me, “Hey buddy, you can’t run off on me like that,” I said, holding his shivering body to me, he whined, to show that he understood me. I wrapped him in my coat, shoving him in my hoodie and zipping it up so I could use both of my hands to get back up. If I thought coming down was hard, coming back up was like ten times as difficult, now that my body was wet and the wind that entered the manhole made chills inevitable but I was determined to get Moose somewhere warm. I was about three feet from the top when I felt a strong grip grab my forearm, and saw another pair of hands grab Moose, just as he was about to slip from my sweat shirt. I was pulled up from the manhole to the safety of the ground, “Are you alright?” Harry asked as soon as I faced him and the rest of the guys, “I’m fine,” I shivered, he took his coat off, putting it on me, “We can go to my house if you would like, my parents aren’t home and it would get both you and Moose out of the cold,” Louis offered, “We left the car over by your apartment,” “Sure, anything to get out of the wind,” I said, my teeth chattering.

Louis POV  
Jersey was right shaking the whole way home, but I guess being soaking wet in the cold November air couldn’t do too much good for her. Regardless, we would be to my house soon enough, which would help a little, but from what Harry has told me, it doesn’t sound like she has a place to stay for much longer. When we got to my house, I put a kettle on for tea. The other three sat down at my dining room table and I didn’t see where Harry had gone off to, “So Jersey, do you want us to walk you back to your apartment?” Liam offered, “Actually, I don’t exactly have anywhere to stay for the time being,” she said, awkwardly, “Yeah you do,” Harry said, walking in from outside, Moose looked up from his spot on the couch, but the poor thing was so tired out from today that he just huffed, laying his head back down, “I just talked to my mom and she said you could stay at my house for the night, and then pretty soon Lou and I will have our own place, and if it’s okay with him, you can move in with us,” he said, looking at me, “I don’t have a problem with it,” I stated, going to get the kettle as it was ready.

Jersey POV  
I wanted to protest, but I also had to keep in mind that this was probably the best for me, I also had Moose to think about, he was a living, breathing creature that needed a good place to stay just as much as I did. I graciously took the cup of tea that Louis offered me and basked in the heat that radiated from of it.  
Liam and Zayn left to go retrieve Harry’s car from in front of my apartment, so I just sat in silence, watching as Harry and Louis talked back and forth, hugging my knees to my chest and continued drinking my tea. I looked over to the couch, where Moose was asleep, curled up in a blanket. Out of nowhere, my phone started ringing, I had forgotten about it for the past few hours, so I found that I had quite a few messages, “Hello,” I answered, “Hey, it’s Arizona,” she replied, “Hey,” I sighed in content, “Did you find Moose?” she asked, concerned, “Yeah, Harry and his friends came out and helped me, now I am at Louis’ house,” I said, “Good, I wanted to make sure you both were alright,” she said, dissipating concern still colored her voice, “Yeah,” I said, “I really wish I could have helped, but Austin was in a particularly bad mood today, and he wouldn’t let me go out,” she stated, “It’s alright, I got my baby back and that’s all that matters, no need to anger him,” I said, “I guess,” she sighed.  
Taylor and I continued to talk for a little while, but eventually Liam and Zayn returned, so I ended the call. I ended up leaving with Harry, while Liam and Zayn got in Liam’s car which they also got while they were out, so we all bid a goodbye to Louis and went separate ways. Moose squirmed in my arms as I held him in the passenger seat, eventually breaking from my grip and climbing over into Harry’s lap, he chuckled, and I smiled as he curled up in his lap, taking another nap.  
Soon, we made it to Harry’s house. He opened my door for me as I took Moose back into my arms, and then opened the door again once we reached his house, “Mom, we’re home,” he called through the house. A woman entered, shooting Harry a disapproving glance, “Harry, don’t shout,” she admonished, he simply rolled his eyes.


	8. Chapter 8

Harry POV  
“Mom, this is J...” I began, “Nicole,” Jersey, err Nicole said, sticking her hand out to my mom, “It’s nice to meet you Ms. Styles,” “Please dear, call me Anne,” she corrected, my mom looked at Moose, staring sleepily back at her, “Aw, who is this precious little thing?” she cooed, “This is Moose,” Nicole introduced, “He is the sweetest little thing, but from the looks of it, he could use a bath,” she chuckled, “Yeah, he kind of got away from me and ended up falling down into the sewer,” Nicole commented, quietly, “Poor thing, how did you manage to get him out?” she asked, “I went down and got him,” my mom shot another glare my way, “Harry offered to go down and get him, but I wouldn’t let him,” she quickly covered for me, “Well, let’s get you out of those damp clothes, you can take a shower to warm up if you would like,” she offered, “That would be lovely,” Nicole said, a small smile gracing her face.  
My mom took Moose out of Nicole’s hands, mentioning something about giving him a bath while I showed Nicole to the bathroom, “Um... Here’s the bathroom,” I said, obviously, she snorted, “I will see if I can find you some dry clothes, let me know if you need anything,” I told her as she shut the door.

Jersey POV  
There was a knock at the door, and I opened it to Anne, “Here are some clothes you can change into, and you can put those clothes in the hamper and I will wash them for you, if you’d like,” she said, handing me a stack of clothes, “Thank you,” I said, she nodded, leaving and closing the door behind her. I turned on the shower and stepped in, basking in the warmth of the water. After finally warming up, I washed my hair and body, getting out and drying off before I put the clothes Anne had given me on and stepped out of the bathroom. The first thing I saw upon exiting was Moose running down the hallway covered in soap bubbles and Anne and another girl running after him, I laughed despite myself, and found Harry doing the same thing.   
He turned to look at me, “Feel better?” he asked, “Yes, much better, thank you,” I said before letting out a yawn, “Let me show you to my room, you will be sleeping there tonight, and I will be taking the couch,” he explained, “I am not kicking you out of your room,” I refused, “I know, I am being a good host and letting you use my room,” he said, leading me to his room.

The Next Day...

Niall POV  
I ended up spending a little more time with my family that I had initially planned, but I was alright with that. I hadn’t been able to get Holly off of my mind though, and I hadn’t seen her since the day on the plane, so I really wasn’t sure what to do about that, I just tried keeping my eye out for her, and my brother noticed, “What’s up with you and brunettes?” he asked while him and I were out on the town, “What do you mean?” I countered, “Ever since you have been home, you have been doing double takes on every brunette we pass, what gives?” he asked, I sighed, realizing that we would be done with this conversation faster if I just told him the truth, “I met this girl; Holly, on the plane over here, and I haven’t been able to get her out of my head ever since,” I explained, “Well, do you have a picture of her or something?” he asked, “Yeah,” I said, showing him a picture I had taken during the little tour I had given her the other day, her long brunette hair framing her face before cascading past her shoulders, but not hiding her beautiful jade green eyes, “Not too bad,” Greg commented, I rolled my eyes, “Yeah, something like that,” I said, walking off, “Where are you going, we have to find your dream girl,” he said, “She could be anywhere by now, I don’t even know if she is still in the country,” I sighed, “We won’t know unless we check,” he said, I shrugged, heading back home, leaving him in town.

Holly POV  
I hadn’t seen Niall since my first day here, and there was some part of me that wished I would see him again, another part that had lost all hope, a huge part that was homesick, and a very small part that was really hungry right now, so here I was in the town of Mullingar, looking for a place to eat. I was looking around when this guy came up to me, “Hello,” he said, “Hi?” I replied, confused on why this guy, whom I’ve never met had come up to talk to me, “Do you want to go do something?” he asked, matching my steps as I began walking, “What did you have in mind?” I countered, “I was thinking horseback riding,” he said after a few minutes of thought, “Um, sure,” I said finally, “Great, come with me,” he said, turning to walk the other way. Despite my better judgment, I went with him seeing as I was way too homesick for it to be good for me, and riding horses may alleviate that.  
If any of my family knew I was doing this, they would have probably scolded me for my idocracy, but I never considered how lonely I would get going off to a new country by myself. This guy was texting somebody while he was driving, “I am no expert, but shouldn’t you be keeping your eyes on the road?” I asked him, “Yeah, probably,” he laughed, “Don’t worry, I’m a good driver,” he said, setting his phone in his lap, “Really, because you just ran a stop sign,” I pointed around, he whipped around to see that I was in fact, right, “You never saw anything,” he said, turning back to me, “Alright... So this is probably a bad time to be asking this, but you aren’t going to kill me, are you?” I asked, mildly concerned, “That wasn’t exactly in the plans,” he chuckled, rounding a curve, then pulling into a long, winding, dirt driveway. He opened the door for me, leading me inside this barn, where I saw Niall, who was staring from me to the other guy with wide eyes, “Niall, you know Holly, right?” the dude had said.

Jersey POV  
I woke up oddly refreshed, cracking my eye open to find that I was in an unfamiliar room. Where was I. I looked down to see Moose sleeping on my chest, petting him, he leaned into my touch, groaning as he stretched. There was a knock at the door before it opened slightly, and curls came into view as Harry stuck his head in the room, “Morning,” he said, smiling slightly. That’s right, I was at his house, “Morning,” I yawned, sitting up to get a dirty look from Moose as he got up, stretched again, and moved to the end of the bed, where he plopped right back down, “How did you sleep?” he asked, “Quite honestly better than I have in a long time,” I said, getting up to stretch myself, “That’s good. Well, my mom made breakfast... And washed your clothes for you. Oh, and the realtor called Lou about our flat and we are free to move in, so we will be doing that today,” he said, seeming to be thinking of anything else he may have forgotten to tell me, “Is that all?” I asked, only slightly making fun of him, he picked up on it, “You know, I’m not too sure, I will get back to you on that though,” he said, “Oh please do, have your people call my people,” I replied snarkily, brushing past him to the hallway to be greeted by the smell of French toast and bacon, surpassed by the smell of fresh coffee, you would have thought we were at a restaurant for the smells that were wafting through the house. I walked out to the dining room where there were large plates of every breakfast food imaginable. I took a seat, awkwardly next to the girl that was chasing after Moose last night with Anne, “Hi, I’m Gemma,” she said warmly, “Nicole,” I replied as she stuck her hand out for me to shake, “Oh I know,” she said, oddly cheerful, “I helped my mom wash your dog,” “I saw, he seemed to be having a good time escaping you guys,” I laughed at the memory, “Yeah, he is quite the slippery one,” she joined my laughter. Anne came out of the kitchen with three cups of coffee, “Good morning dear, how did you sleep?” she asked, “Very well, thank you,” I replied with a smile as she handed me a cup of coffee.  
I enjoyed a large helping of food, then changed back into my clothes from yesterday, realizing that they were cleaner now than they had been in awhile, I guess thats what happens when you have access to a washer and dryer more than every two weeks, “Um, where do you want this stuff?” I asked Anne, walking into the kitchen, where she was cleaning up the breakfast dishes, “Oh, please keep them, they look way better on you than me,” she said with a warm smile, “I can’t take your clothes,” I refused, “It isn’t like you are stealing them, dear. You may have them if you want them,” she offered with an encouraging smile, “Alright, thank you,” I said, giving in, “Do you need any help?” I asked, “No, thank you. I am just about done,” she said, even though she had a huge pile of dishes left to do, but before I could ask again, Harry came in, “Alright, let’s get started,” he said, taking my hand and leading me to the living room to go out the door, “We can stop by your apartment first and then come back here, heading Louis’ afterwards,” he explained, “Wouldn’t it make more sense to pack up your stuff while we are here, I really don’t have that much stuff,” I said, “Erm... I guess that would make sense,” he said, scratching his head, “C’mon Styles, get your head in the game,” I teased, he rolled his eyes, “You going all High School Musical on me now?” he asked, “What’s that?” I asked, he blushed slightly, “Um... Well...” he stammered, “I’m joking, man. But you just admitted to watching High School Musical,” I laughed, “Louis’ sisters forced me to watch it,” he argued, “Don’t let him lie to you, he has the box set of the movies,” Gemma claimed, passing through the living room, “I’m not surprised,” I smiled, “Are you quite finished?” he asked, slightly amused, I thought for a moment, “I guess so,” I shrugged.  
We grabbed a bunch of boxes from Harry’s garage and started packing up his room, surprisingly not taking as much time as I thought it would, we just packed up as we talked, laughed, and sung to music that was on his iPod. I was shutting up one of the last boxes, when it popped back open. I shut it again, and it opened again, barking, “Dude, you packed my dog in one of the boxes,” I called out to him as I moved some of the clothes to find my dog staring at me, wagging his tail, “Really?” he asked, coming back in the room with some packing tape. He laughed once he saw that I spoke the truth, “How does that happen?” he asked, “I was just about to ask the same thing,” I said, lifting Moose out of the box to have him scamper off out the door.  
Anne and Gemma helped us pack the boxes up and we were ready to go off to Louis’ house, “What about Moose?” Harry asked me, “We can watch him while you guys go get settled,” Anne spoke up, “Are you sure?” I asked, “Totally, he is such a sweetheart,” Gemma smiled. With that we were off to Louis’ house, since it was closer to Harry’s than mine, and mine was closer to our new place. Louis was ready to leave, having packed his stuff already with the help of his mom and sisters, so we made a stop by the new place to unload the stuff, seeing as we didn’t have room to seat three people in the car... Well, legally anyways. We dumped the boxes right at the entrance, then hopped back in the car to go to my apartment.  
When we got there, the first thing I saw was Gary, “Did you find your mutt, Martinez?” he asked, rather rudely. I chose not to answer him, brushing past him to my apartment followed by the guys, “He seems like a real swell guy,” Louis said, sarcastically, “You have no idea,” I huffed.  
We had already packed up most of my stuff, and Harry was taking it down to the car, while Louis and I packed up the few things that were in my kitchen, “So I have had something that I have been thinking about lately that I wanted to ask you... But if you don’t feel comfortable answering it, you don’t have to,” he said, “Shoot,” I said, giving him the okay to ask away, “How do you feed another living creature while your... um... yeah,” he stammered, “If I’m ever stuck with the option of either Moose eating, or me eating, I choose Moose,” I replied honestly, “It was part of the responsibility I took by getting a pet, and I try to uphold that,” he nodded in understanding. Harry came in at that time, slightly out of breath, “Why does it feel like I am the only one doing any work around here?” he asked, “Because you are,” Louis and I answered in unison.

Peyton POV  
Today I was going fishing with my granddad. We were going to meet up with his best friend and his son, which Granddad said I had met when I was younger, but I had no recollection of this, so I would be meeting these people again, which I didn’t mind; I liked meeting new people. We went to Faerie Lake, a place full of so many good memories. We pulled into one of the old gravel parking spots. We got out, grabbing our fishing poles, tackle box, and cooler, “Look, there they are,” my granddad pointed to two men, one was older, presumably Granddad’s friend, and another who appeared to be only a few years older than me, “Peyton, you remember Liam, don’t you,” grand dad said, “Vaguely... I remember fishing with some kid a few years older than me and then having them push me in because I caught more fish than them,” I smirked as realization hit ‘Liam’s’ eyes, “I don’t believe I remember that,” he said nonchalantly, I rolled my eyes, “If you say so,” I muttered, “Well, it looks like you two kids have a lot to catch up on. You can take this boat and we’ll take the next one,” Liam’s dad said, realizing that there was only one boat available for rental. Great.  
“Correct me if I am wrong, but did I see you at the bar the other day,” he said, “Yeah, I believe you were there with a few of your friends,” I confirmed, “So, do you work there?” he asked, “Off and on, I know the owner, so I usually just come to hang around,” I said, he nodded, “Sounds like fun,” he commented, “It is,” I agreed, “Do you have a sister?” he asked out of the blue, “Yeah,” I said, he laughed, “What is so funny?” I asked, “I seem to remember being here one summer with three girls, we were all playing with the boats and I think it was you your sister in one boat, and your guys’ friend and I in another boat and it sprung a leak in the middle of the lake,” he said, I laughed along with him, finally remembering, “Yeah, that was my cousin with her,” I said as the memory came back in full swing:  
It was a perfectly sunny summer afternoon, about mid seventies so it wasn’t too hot. I had come to Faerie Lake with Nicki, Holly, and Granddad and we were going to meet Liam and his dad. Once there the adults shooed us off to go have fun while they caught up and enjoyed a nice cold beer. We decided to race canoes, Liam and Nicki would be in one team; Holly and I on the other. The race was going great, we were even winning. All of the sudden our canoe sprung a leak. Liam and Nicki laughed as they paddled their canoe over to us to give them a hand, “Need a lift?” Liam offered, Holly was quick to switch boats, “Peyton... You coming?” Nicki asked, “No, I will go down with this ship,” I said, standing up in the middle, saluting as the boat sunk lower, “You can’t swim,” Holly pointed out, “Good point,” I acknowledged, letting them help me into the other boat. Now we headed back to shore with an over full canoe that could tip at any moment. It eventually did, sending us all into the water. I panicked; The truth was that I was sincerely afraid of water, namely drowning, but I never told anyone. I held my breath, ready to drown, but two strong arms grabbed me, bringing me to land, “Are you alright?” Liam asked, his face dangerously close to mine, “I am now,” I breathed.

I blushed, remembering that Liam technically saved my life, but that was about eight years ago; I doubted that he’d remember that. With that memory, we had finally made it to the center of the lake and we were prepared to fish. It was uneventful for the first hour, not a bite for either of us. Then eventually I started catching a bunch of fish, “Taking notes, Liam?” I asked, as I noticed him glare after catching my seventh fish, unhooking it and tossing it back, “What if you aren’t getting a bunch of fish, what if it is the same fish, that just keeps coming back,” he said, cutely, “That’s still more than you have caught all day,” I teased, he gave me a light shove, but I lost my balance, going straight into the lake. I surfaced quickly as I glared at him, feeling the ice cold water like needles in my skin, “Oh my goodness, I am so sorry,” he said, offering me his hand to help me out, and I pulled him in, getting back into the boat. He surfaced with a surprised expression on his face, “Don’t give me that look, you so deserved that,” I rationalized, “You would think you would be more grateful to someone who has saved your life twice in the past,” he said, getting back in with no help, I assumed because he didn’t trust me not to push him back in, “You remember that?” I groaned, “Yeah, now we should probably go into the lodge before we get sick out here,” he said, as he began to row us back to shore.


	9. Chapter 9

Louis POV  
We spent the greater part of the day unpacking, but we still weren’t done. I guess we had more stuff than we realized, “What time is it?” Jersey asked, “Um, quarter till five,” Harry said, checking his phone, “I have to go open up the bar,” she said, searching around for something, “Can’t someone else do it, I am not even sure we can find the door right now,” “No, it’s my bar, it’s my job to take care of the upkeep,” Jersey said, picking up her phone, “Just don’t open tonight, those people can find somewhere else to get wasted at,” Harry negotiated, “Those people are my customers, and I like my job,” Jersey huffed “What are you looking for?” I asked, trying to see if I could offer her a hand, “I don’t remember where I put my coat,” she sighed, “Oh, I saw it about an hour ago, I put it in the front closet,” I said, “We have a front closet?” she asked, turning to me, “Yeah, it’s over there by that unstable- looking pile of boxes,” I pointed. Originally, we had each only brought a few boxes, but my mom and sisters had taken a moving van to this storage place that Harry’s and my mom collectively purchased for us because they were tired of our stuff cluttering up their houses. I was watching the other two go back and forth about going out to the bar tonight, “Styles, just stop!” Jersey demanded, “Why can’t you just not go out there for one night?” he persisted, “You want to know the real reason?” she asked, “I do, actually” Harry replied, “Because, if I don’t come up with enough money by the end of the month, The bank repossesses my bar, and I lose everything I have worked for since I graduated high school,” she said, “Oh, I didn’t know,” “Well, now you do, I have to go now, Taylor is waiting for me,” she said, heading for the door, “Let us give you a ride,” I offered, “No, you don’t have to, thanks though,” she refused, “That’s crazy, it will take you too long to walk there from here,” I waved her off, grabbing all of our coats as the three of us headed out of the door.

Jersey POV  
So far, Louis irritated me a lot less than Harry, he also tended to get under my skin less; whether that was intentional or otherwise. Of course, I didn’t want to get too close to either one of them, people just had a way of getting hurt around me, and I had to prevent that at whatever cost; even my happiness.

Taylor POV  
I had to unlock the bar by myself for the first time, which meant that Jersey wasn’t there yet. I guess it was a good thing that she had given me a key after all, I hadn’t even managed to lose it yet. But if I couldn’t manage to cover up for my mishap with Austin yesterday, losing a key would be the least of my worries. It had been an exceptionally hard week at the office for him; I could always tell because he would drink more. I guess I must have set him off by asking him to help Jersey find her dog, so he smacked me around a little, nothing more than some cosmetic damage, but Jersey wouldn’t think of it the same way and that would lead to some more trouble.  
I had left the door open so when a car pulled up, I heard Jersey arrive with Harry and Louis. I braced myself for anything, turning to face the door as they walked in. She took one look at me and her eyes narrowed, but she remained quiet as if testing to see if I would come up with a good excuse, “Whoa, another softball to the face?” Louis guessed, “Nah, my brother and I were wrestling-” “You haven’t talked to your brother in eight years, he doesn’t even live around here,” Jersey called me out, mid- lie. Time seemed to stand still as our eyes met again, all I saw was pure hatred, and there was no way this would end well.

Jersey POV  
“I am going to kill him,” I seethed, turning on my heel for the door, “Nicole, no,” Taylor said, grabbing my arm, “I’m fine,” she claimed, retracting her hand as I tensed from her touch, “You’re fine?” I asked, incredulously, “What should I expect next, a broken arm, a punctured lung, or maybe this time he will skip a few steps and the next time I see you, medics will be carting you away in a body bag,” I said, feigning nonchalance, “It’s nothing, I can handle it,” “Well, you are doing a great job,” I said, heading for the door again, “Nicole, I swear don’t do it. I will never talk to you again,” she panicked, “Taylor! Sometimes I don’t think you realize the severity of the situations you get yourself into. You shouldn’t be taking this so lightly,” I yelled, “I’m not,” she whimpered, tears forming in her eyes. I was at a loss for words, so I just left, slamming the door behind me.

Niall POV  
So after I had left Greg earlier, he spotted Holly and all but kidnapped her to bring her out to this farm so we could hang out. He didn’t stay for long, claiming that he was meeting up with a buddy, but I am pretty sure he wanted to give us some alone time, which was pretty cool of him, aside from the whole kidnapping Holly part, but she didn’t seem too phased by it. We decided to go horseback riding, taking a trip down this huge trail, “So do you often go hanging out with random guys offering to take you places?” I asked, stopping my horse for a moment, “Isn’t that what I did with you?” she countered, “I’m wounded,” I said, putting a hand to my heart, she rolled her eyes, “I’m being serious dear, you hurt me real deep,” I said, “Oh really, what can I do to fix that?” she asked, “Race me,” I said, “You really want to race?” she asked, raising an eyebrow, I nodded, “From here to the end of the lane,” I said, “Okay,” she said. We lined our horses up side by side, “Alright, on the count of three we will go,” I said, she nodded, “One... Two... Three,” I said, and we were off. She kissed at her horse and it went off at a dead sprint, while she sat back and laughed, her hair flowing freely behind her, while I couldn’t get my horse to go at more than a fast trot. I made it to the end of the lane where she waited for me on her horse, “What took you so long?” she teased, “Cheater,” I said, “How did I cheat, you were the one who challenged me to the race,” she pointed out, “You never said you had experience riding horses,” I whined, “You never asked,” she replied, “You still cheated,” I huffed, she stuck her tongue out, turning her horse back around, “Come on spoilsport, let’s get these horses back,” she said, heading back to the farm, “You’re already sick of me?” I asked, my horse following behind hers, “Not entirely,” she smiled.

Liam POV  
Peyton and I were sitting by the fire at the lake’s lodge, wrapped in a couple blankets when her granddad and my dad came back. They laughed at the sight of us, “You know swimming is usually a summer sport,” my dad commented, “It’s his fault,” Peyton said, “He pushed me in,” “It was an accident,” I defended myself, “He was just jealous that I was catching more fish than him,” she smirked, I rolled my eyes. We looked back to the other two, who seemed to be sharing a silent conversation, “Who’s hungry?” her granddad finally said. Those guys were really weird.  
We finally got into some dry clothes, and drove to a nice small restaurant where the adults yet again decided to separate from us, muttering something about a kids table, but I didn’t really mind, “You think they’re trying to tell us something?” Peyton asked, I laughed, “Maybe, they aren’t exactly being subtle about it,” we shared a laugh, “So how are things, I’m pretty sure we have about thirteen years or so to make up for,” I said, “Well, I am taller, older, and going to college now,” she said, rather vaguely, “Oh cool, where?” I asked, trying to get some more out of her, “I go to King’s College, studying to be a physiotherapist,” she replied, “Oh cool,” I replied, “What about your sister, and cousin?” I asked, “Well, Holly likes to travel, she is currently spending time in Ireland, she will be back tomorrow actually,” she said, a calculating look on her face, “And my cousin is around, she owns a small business downtown and she is in the process of moving right now,” she said, “Out of London?” I asked, “No, just into a different place,” she explained.


	10. Chapter 10

Peyton POV  
“So what about you, my grandfather said you were in a band or something,” I said. He was about to respond when our waiter came with our drinks, which we both thanked him for, “Yeah, it’s pretty cool,” he said, brushing it off, “What is the name of your band?” I asked, “Oh, you probably don’t know it,” he said, almost as if trying to hide it, “Just tell me,” I said, “One Direction,” he sighed, I raised my eyes, “Really now?” I said, “Yeah,” he said, “Were you trying to hide it or something?” I asked, “Kind of, I guess I just didn’t want you to treat me any different,” he admitted, “Well, that’s kind of dumb, I am pretty sure you the same guy you were thirteen years ago,” I said, “Yeah, well not everyone always sees it that way,” he said, “Yeah, well not everyone is as awesome as I am,” I smiled, and so did he.

Jersey POV  
I walked to a nearby park and just dropped down onto the first bench I saw upon reaching the center. I rested my face in my hands, trying to think of what to do about Taylor, but my thoughts were interrupted by the weight shifting on the bench. It could have been just any random person, but I knew better than that. I looked over to find Harry sitting beside me, “What?” I sighed, “I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” he said, “I’m fine,” I snorted, there was an awkward silence, “Do you want to talk about it?” he offered, “I don’t really have anything to talk about, just the fact that my best friend is with this lovely guy who would seemingly rather see her in a body bag instead of living, it kind of sucks,” I muttered, he remained silent, almost as if knowing that I wasn’t finished speaking, “And the absolute best part was that I introduced them,” I continued, “Can’t you tell someone?” he asked, I shook my head, “She says that if I try to tell someone, like the police or something that he’ll hurt her, or someone she cares about... And that’s why she wouldn’t let me do something about it,” “But how would he know, if you tried to do something?” “Something tells me that if the police came knocking down his door, ready to take him away in handcuffs that he would figure it out on his own,” I said with a grim laugh, “Oh,” was all he said, I nodded, “I just really hate that she let it get this far, it took her forever to even tell me, and she is just being careless with her life, like she doesn’t even want to live it,” I sighed, “Maybe she doesn’t,” Harry said, I shot him the dirtiest look I could muster, “I was just throwing out an idea,” he said, holding his hands up in defense, “Well, she has a family, and dreams, and things to look forward to,” I defended, “Have you actually asked her if she wanted to...?” he trailed off, “She’s falling for Louis,” I said, “If nothing else, she has him. But he doesn’t know about Austin...” “Whose Austin?” Harry asked, “Austin is Taylor’s ‘boyfriend’” I said, he nodded in understanding, letting me continue, “Anyways, Louis doesn’t know about him, and Louis can’t know about him...” “Because Taylor likes Louis, but she can’t break up with Austin, so she is just going to leave out that small detail?” Harry asked, “Yes, well kind of, she has broken up with Austin... Multiple times, but Austin won’t let her break up with him, so they aren’t technically dating, it’s all really confusing, but until Taylor works it out, she doesn’t really want to say anything,” I tried to explain, Harry sighed, “I don’t really like the sounds of it,” he began, I went to speak, but he stopped me, “But, he won’t find out from me,” he finished.  
Somehow during that discussion, Harry managed to convince me to come back to the bar. I walked in with him, and the bar was in full swing. Both Louis and Taylor turned our way at the opening of the door. I locked eyes with Taylor, but then turned away, jumping right into taking orders.

Zayn POV  
I was having a lazy night with the family tonight, seeing as all of the guys were busy. Louis and Harry were moving into their new place, Liam was hanging out with some of his father’s friends, and Niall still wasn’t back from Ireland; but it was nice; enjoying a home cooked meal, and just kicking back and watching movies with my sisters.

Jersey POV  
After what seemed like hours -what actually was hours- it was closing time. I had to be honest, I didn’t feel all that bad, seeing as I was able to get a few people to buy me some shots. I still wasn’t talking to Taylor, but at the same time I was glad she was okay. I needed to find a way to make sure she was safe, and I wasn’t sure I knew how to do that right now, but I had to think of something before she ended up dead.  
By the time we got back to the flat, I was exhausted so I went to the room that was designated to be mine and passed out on the ground. When I woke up I was laying on a bed, still in my room. I guess I was a heavy sleeper. I went into the kitchen and searched in the boxes of kitchen appliances for a coffee machine. I had to fill it with bottled water because our water wasn’t hooked up yet, then I waited on the counter for the coffee to brew, “Feeling better?” Harry asked, leaning up against the counter, effectively startling me. I spun around to face him, “Oh, sure I guess,” I shrugged, “Hung over?” he noted, judging by the volume of my voice, “Yes,” I said, even though he already knew judging by the smile on his face, “Did Taylor stay the night? I asked, “Yeah, it was pretty late for her to be trying to go home, especially after having a few drinks,” Harry stated, watching the coffee brew as I had been doing earlier. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed Austin’s number, which I needed to know for times like these, “Hello?” he answered, “Hello, this is Tory from the bar that Taylor works at. She had offered to stay a little later and was beat by the time of closing, so I let her crash at my place,” I said, “She’s alright though, right?” Austin asked, almost sounding like a concerned individual, “Yeah, just exhausted, I will send her home as soon as she wakes up,” I said, “Alright, well thanks Tory, I was worried about her,” Austin said, sounding sincere, which made me want to puke, “Sure thing, bye,” I hung up, “So if you care about her safety so much, why are you sending her back to the person that beats her within an inch of her life?” Harry asked, “It will be worse for her when she finally gets home if she doesn’t go home,” I explained, he looked conflicted, “Look I don’t expect you to believe it. Sometimes that’s just how life works,” I said, angrily, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you, that’s just... That really sucks,” he concluded, “You have no idea,” I sighed. The coffee finally finished brewing, and I poured both Harry and I a cup, and we just talked; mostly about him because I just didn’t want to talk about myself. Our conversation was interrupted by my phone ringing, “Hello,” I answered, “Hey Nik, it’s Peyton,” was the response, “Hey Peyton, what’s up?” I asked, “Hey, granddad is in town and he wanted to have dinner with us, and seeing as though Holly is coming home today, I felt that it would be the perfect day to do it...”


	11. Chapter 11

Harry POV  
I was observing Nicole as she talked on the phone with Peyton; she looked less than pleased with whatever they were talking about. I was brought out of my thoughts by a yawn coming from beside me; it was Taylor, “Mornin, how are you feeling?” I asked, “Not as hung over as I assume Nicole is,” she said with a wry smile, I chuckled, “Yeah, she’s pretty bad,” I said, looking back at her, “I bet, is she doing alright otherwise?” she asked, “I’d say so... About as cranky as she always is around me,” I said, Nicole kicked me, and I was about to say something when I noticed her holding her phone between her ear and her shoulder with a cup of coffee in her hands held out for Taylor, “Oh yeah, I better get going,” Taylor said, taking the cup from me, “He’s probably not too happy that I didn’t show up last night,” she stared into her coffee for a moment, “Nicole called him, and told him that you stayed over after a hectic night at work last night, she said he seemed okay with it,” I explained, “Well, here’s hoping. Thanks for letting me crash for the night,” she said with a tired smile, “It’s not a problem, you’re welcome here whenever,” I said, giving her what I hoped was an encouraging smile. She nodded, giving a tentative wave toward Nicole and leaving.

Holly POV  
As much as I didn’t want to leave, I felt as if I had almost overstayed my welcome in Ireland and it was time for me to come back home. I had hardly heard from Nicole since I’d been gone, she phoned me once or twice and shot me a few texts, so for that period of time I relied on Peyton to keep me updated on her, because let’s face it, I worried about her, but she seemed to be doing alright right now. Peyton also told me that our grandfather was currently in London, so we would be having dinner together for the first time in probably sixteen months give or take a few days. Turns out that Niall was going back to London at the same time, so I wouldn’t be bored for the hour or so flight back.

Jersey POV  
“So what’s up?” Harry asked as I ended the call with Peyton, “Apparently my grandfather is in town, and I haven’t seen him in about a year and a half,” I said, “And that’s a bad thing?” he was confused, “That he’s here no, that I haven’t seen him in awhile, yes,” I said, “Then what’s with the frowny face?” he asked, I rolled my eyes at him, “I made a deal with him; if I could keep a successful business here, get some schooling, and keep up on a place, I could stay here, but if I couldn’t then I would move back in with him,” I said, “So far, I haven’t accomplished any of it,” “How much time did he give you to do it?” he asked, I counted on my fingers, “Like two years,” I estimated, “How long has it been?” “About five,” I said, “Oh,” was all he said. It was quiet for a little while, “So you lived with him for a little while then?” he said, clearly both trying to keep conversation going and learn a little more about me, “Yeah, I lived with him for about three years, after my parents went away, but he was more of a parent to me than my parents ever were; he pretty much raised me” I said, “Were your parents not really around?” he guessed, “You could say that... It’s complicated,”

Harry POV  
It seems like I asked the wrong question. I finally got her to begin to open up to me, and then I had to open my mouth and she starts closing up like always.  
“I hate to ask this... Like I seriously hate to ask this, but can you go down to the bar tonight and help Taylor out with bartending and stuff because I have to go out to dinner?” Nicole asked Louis and I as we started unpacking for the second day in a row, “Sure thing, leave it to us. You have nothing to worry about,” Louis said, “Yeah, Taylor will keep you from burning the place down,” she smiled, “Hey, Harry is the one that likes to play with matches, “Oh, I bet,” she smirked looking up at me from where she was on the ground, playing with Moose, “Hey princess, any chance you want to actually help us unpack?” I suggested, “But you guys are doing such a good job,” she said. I rolled my eyes, “Any better excuses, we already know you have to be pretty strong to be owning a bar,” I continued, “With any luck, we’ll never have to find out just how strong you are,” Louis added, “I’m sure I can spare a few minutes of my time to help you guys,” she condescended.

Nicole POV  
I helped unpack for a little while, then it came time that I should probably start getting ready for tonight, so I started out by taking a shower. Then I got out, making sure that the door to my room was shut before I walked out and that was when I realized that I never brought my clothes in from the living room. I did the only thing I could think to do and called Harry, “Is there a reason you’re calling me from the other room?” he asked, apparently amused, “I forgot to bring my box of clothes in,” I said, “So?” he asked, challenging me, “So, I just got out of the shower, and I am only in a towel,” I said, as he muttered what was going on to Louis, “I don’t see your problem,” he said, cheekily. I hung up. For a moment I contemplated actually going out there in my towel, when there was a knock on the door, “Who is it?” I asked, “It’s Louis, I have your clothes and the door’s locked,” he explained. I made sure that my towel was fully secured before going over to unlock the door, “Thanks,” I said as he set the box down on my mattress, “It’s no trouble love, you don’t need to live with two guys who act like pricks to you,” he smiled, I laughed, “Thanks again,” I said, shutting the door behind him as he left.  
I went through my clothes a couple times before finally finding an outfit that was worthy of seeing my granddad; not that he was overly picky on what I wore, it’s just not much of my clothing was in the best of shape, so I had some that I saved for more special occasions than just another night at the bar. My outfit consisted of a red, blue, and gray plaid shirt, some dark wash skinny, a pair of gray Vans, and a gray beanie. I brushed my hair, blow dried it, then straightened, then applied minimal make up.  
Once I was finally ready, it was about half an hour before I was supposed to meet up with Peyton. That’s when I got a call from a very perturbed Holly, “What’s a matter?” I asked with a small smile, actually pretty amused at her tone, “I am at the airport, waiting for Peyton, but she obviously forgot about me and won’t pick up her phone,” she grumbled, “So...” I led her, “So... I was wondering if there was any way you could come get me?” she asked, I thought it over for a second before turning to the guys, not even acknowledging Harry, “Is there any way I could borrow your car to pick my cousin up from the airport?” I asked Louis, “Sure,” he said, “Yeah, Peyton forgot to get her, and she isn’t too happy about it,” I laughed, “It’s pretty funny if you ask me,” “Hey!” Holly protested, overhearing me, “Yeah, let me get you my keys,” he said, leaving me with Harry, “Yeah Holl, I can come get you, give me like ten minutes,” I said, hanging up. I looked up to see Harry staring at me, “What are you staring at?” I asked, “You look nice,” he said, almost sounding surprised, “Thanks?” I replied. Just then Louis came back with his keys and I left.


	12. Chapter 12

Peyton POV  
Where could those girls be? They were like fifteen minutes. I couldn’t think of any reason for them not to come, “Shoot,” I said, finally remembering something, “What?” Liam asked, concerned, “I may or may not have forgotten to pick my sister up from the airport,” I said, sheepishly, “What?” Liam laughed, “Um yeah, I really did forget,” I said, I was interrupted by a knock at the door, “I got it,” Liam called as he and I went to grab the door, “You may want to inform your granddad about that,” he said, opening the door to reveal Nicole and a very unhappy Holly, “Hi Peyton... Liam?!” Nicole greeted, “Hi Jersey, what are you doing here?” Liam asked, cluelessly, “I was invited,” she said, smartly, “Oh... OH! You never told me you two were related,” he said, “You never asked,” I said,” “I knew you looked familiar,” Nicole said as realization dawned on her, “Yeah... I’ll be honest, I didn’t recognize you at all,” Liam said, sheepishly, “It’s only been like thirteen years,” Holly said, rolling her eyes, “Oh Holly, still friendly as ever,” Liam laughed. We let them in and then we all sat down to eat.

Liam POV  
“So Nicole, how have you been?” my dad asked, “Yeah, we haven’t seen you, probably since the accident,” my mom added. What accident were they talking about? I tried to remember back to see if something stuck out, but I couldn’t think of anything, “It’s been a rough couple of years, but I’ve had the support of some awesome friends and family,” Nicole said, her voice wavering ever so slightly that I’m sure most everyone else missed it, “Leighton was a great girl and she will be missed greatly,” my mom added. Leighton... Leighton... Oh yeah, that was her sister, I had only met her once or twice, she had to have been a good four years older than Nicole. I didn’t remember what happened to her, but judging by the look on her face, I’d guess that Nicole didn’t want to talk about it.

Taylor POV  
I was very grateful that Louis and Harry showed up at the bar today. For some reason it was more packed than usual, so it was nice to have a few extra hands. Jersey had texted me earlier saying that she was going to have dinner with Peyton, Holly, and her granddad while he was in town. She didn’t mention that she would be sending the boys, but I really wasn’t complaining. I was especially grateful that they didn’t bring up anything about last night.  
It was about eight-thirty and everything at the bar was in full swing. We had finally gotten a break from serving drinks, so we enjoyed it; chatting up the people who sat at the bar, enjoying a drink of our own. There was this guy who seemed to be advancing on a girl in a way that the girl wasn’t pleased, so Harry decided to step in.

Harry POV  
“Eric stop!” this woman cried, tearing her hand out of this man’s grasp, “C’mon Katie, it’s time to go home,” the guy said, grabbing her again as his buddies laughed, “I believe she told you to stop,” I stepped in. The guy laughed, “Stay out of it pretty boy, before I make your face not so pretty,” he slurred, thoroughly drunk, “I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” I said, standing my ground, “That’s what I’m trying to do,” he said, tugging at the girl’s arm again, “No, she will be staying here, you and your buddies have had enough drinks, you need to leave,” I said, sternly. He seemed to be complying, and then he turned around quicker than I thought he would have been able to do with alcohol running through his system, and punched me square in the jaw.

Louis POV  
I saw Harry get hit and jumped right over the bar to come help him fend off the lot of guys swarming him. I turned to see Taylor pulling the girl away from the fight with her phone to her ear. Something tells me there would be more going down tonight than just a bar fight.

Jersey POV  
I received a call from Taylor saying the guys had gotten into a bar fight. I hung up, knowing she would give me all the details when I got there. I explained what happened to my granddad and excused myself. The other three excused themselves too, most likely trying to get out of dinner more than wanting to help break up the fight, or they wanted to see a good bar fight; but nevertheless wanting to get out of dinner.  
We hopped into Louis’ car and I sped to the club, going much faster than I was supposed to be going, but I had to get to the bar while it was still in one piece. I went in there to see that a majority of people had left from the time Taylor had texted me, saying it was packed, but the primary focus of everyone was the fight that was going on right in the middle of the bar; there were broken chairs and mugs with people strewn amongst the mess, the two I could identify were Harry and Louis. They seemed to be holding their own pretty well, but this needed to end. I pulled them out of the fight right in time to catch one guy’s punch right in the face. The guys stopped immediately realizing who I was, “I don’t care what happened, or who started it, I just want you all to get the hell out of my bar, and don’t even think about coming back,” I said as calmly as I could. The biggest one in the group seemed to have the most balls, “I am not leaving without...” “GET OUT!” I shouted, and everyone fled the bar. The four behind the bar rushed up to me as did Louis and Harry, “Guys relax, it doesn’t even hurt,” I tried to tell all of them; it was a lie... A huge lie in fact, but I hated when people fussed over me, “Oh hush up, you are getting a huge bruise on your face, and you are saying that it doesn’t even hurt. You are so full of crap,” Taylor said, seeing past my front. I swatted all of their hands away, “Even if it is, I have a personal space issue, so you all really need to take a step back.” After much grumbling, they all complied. It was about to be a long night.


	13. Chapter 13

Niall POV  
Holly just texted me something about witnessing a bar fight. I had to watch what I say because apparently I wasn’t supposed to think it was awesome. She said that once her cousin got there, everyone near crapped their pants and left. That part was awesome, but I guess someone punched her in the face. I really don’t know because obviously I wasn’t there. I was back at Zayn’s house and I didn’t know where the other lads were. Zayn said that Liam was out to dinner with some family friends and Louis and Harry were doing a favor for the bartender from Hogshead. It didn’t really matter to me what was going on beyond that. Zayn and I just chilled with his family, which is apparently what Zayn had been doing for the past few days; he didn’t seem to mind.

Zayn POV  
The other lads had been busy doing their own things, so I just hung out with my family. It’s not that I didn’t like having plans with the other boys, but I really liked the extra time I seemed to have to spend with my family. Being in a band sometimes made it hard to see my family all that often so I would cherish any time I was able to spend with them. Niall got back from Ireland a couple hours ago, so we were just hanging out, watching TV, and eating food; Niall’s favorite past time.

Taylor POV  
We collectively decided that we would clean up the bar tomorrow as we closed up early due to the fight. Liam would take Harry’s car with Holly and Peyton, and Louis would take Harry, Nicole, and I in the other. I locked up the bar and turned to see Nicole staring at a car, “What’s up?” I asked her, “That car seems familiar,” she said absently, I followed her eyes to a rather large black truck, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before,” I said, she shrugged, “I must just be going crazy,” “Who are you kidding, you’ve always been crazy,” Holly said, laughing, Nicole laughed too, “Point taken.”

Austin POV  
I was right, she was hanging out with Nicole again, and I didn’t like that. She lied to me, I didn’t like that either, “What exactly do you want from me?” asked this guy that I pulled off the street after he said he had gotten into a fight in the bar, “I just need you to do me a favor. It will all make sense in due time, my friend.” I saw that Nicole had spotted me, and pointed me out to Taylor, but as soon as they both turned their attention from me, and I drove off.

Taylor POV  
I asked Louis to drop me off at my house. Nicole stepped out with me for a moment, “Be safe,” she directed, pulling me into a tight embrace, “I will,” I promised her. Austin wasn’t home yet, which was unusual because he was normally here before me, but then I took into account the fact that I got off work earlier that I usually do.

Jersey POV  
We all finally got to the flat, and my face was killing me, “Your face hurt?” Holly asked, “Nah, I’m fine,” I lied, she rolled her eyes, pulling out a bottle of Advil and handing it to me, “I’ve known you for too long to be able to tell when you are lying to me or not,” she said, I smiled gratefully. We took a seat on the couch and Louis and Harry instantly avoided my gaze, “Did I do something wrong?” I asked, popping a few pills into my mouth and swallowing, “They’re afraid you will yell at them for fighting in your bar,” Liam said, knowing his friends like the back of his hand, “I’m not mad,” I said, “Taylor explained it all to me, I should thank you for keeping an eye on the people at my bar,” I said, “You’re welcome?” they said in unison, obviously confused. I decided that I needed a drink so I went into the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge, “Should you really mix ibuprofen with alcohol?” Peyton asked, “Think about this; how often do I actually do what I am supposed to do?” I asked her, “She has a point,” Holly said, the three boys agreed.

Holly POV  
We spent at least a good hour just talking about really whatever crossed our minds. I looked at my phone, “It’s only midnight, plenty early to still go somewhere,” I said, everyone looked at me, “You know like not a club or anything, unless you guys would like to start another fight,” I smiled, “I think we’re good,” Harry said, “Well, at least you’d have me to back you guys up this time; I know how to dodge a punch,” I laughed, ignoring Nicole who gave me the finger, “It wasn’t my fault that I got hit while trying to break up the fight,” she mumbled, “Timing is everything, my dear,” I said, “I can very well kick you out of here,” she said, “We both know that you won’t,” I replied, “Yeah,” she sighed, staring up at the ceiling, “For more of a lack of wanting to get up than anything else,” I laughed, “Speaking of that, will you go get me a beer?” she asked, “Can we go out somewhere?” I asked, “I don’t care,” she said. I knew we probably wouldn’t end up going anywhere, but I got her a beer regardless, “Yay, you’re my favorite oldest cousin,” she said, “You only have two,” Liam said, “That was her whole point,” Peyton laughed. Nicole yawned, “I’m tired,” she stated, “I might just call it a night, it’s not every day that I am able to go to bed before three in the morning,” she said, I almost said something, just to annoy her, but she spoke again before I could, “Feel free to go out and do something, I’m just not really up for it,” she said, “You didn’t even finish your beer,” I said, feeling as if I made the effort of getting her a beer for nothing, “Oh yeah, can’t let that go to waste,” she commented before chugging it, and setting the empty back on the ground, “Night all.” she said, retreating into her room.  
The truth was that none of us were really up for going someplace, we were all pretty bored, but we didn’t want to make an effort to do anything. Eventually we all decided to call it a night, Harry and Louis going to their respective rooms, Peyton and I each taking a couch, and Liam offering to take the floor.


	14. Chapter 14

Peyton POV  
Both Liam and I woke up to a text message from my granddad saying that he wanted to talk to the four of us. I looked at the time to see that it was only nine am. I heard someone groan from the hall and got up to see that it was Nicole, reading something from her phone, “Good morning sunshine, I see that you got the same message,” I said, she glared at me, “You aren’t allowed to be this annoying this early in the morning,” she declared, I laughed at Liam’s expression, “She isn’t a morning person,” I explained, now trying to think of a way to wake Holly up, but Nicole beat me to it, chucking a pillow at her hard enough to send her jumping up from the couch in surprise, “What the heck?” she asked, glaring, “Granddad wants to talk to us,” she said, “Why all four of us?” she asked, “I don’t know, no one can ever tell what that crazy old man is thinking. But get up, we need to go,” Nicole commanded, Holly sighed, but followed her instructions.

Jersey POV  
I was really dreading doing this. I was beyond sure that the main focus of this would be talking about all of the things that I was supposed to accomplish, but have failed to do so. I tried to keep in the best of spirits, but I was seriously not up for it. My eye was hurting more than yesterday to top it off, so I really was in a bad mood.  
We left a note for the boys, and then headed to the Payne residence, where my grandfather was staying, “By God Nicole, what happened to your face?” my grandfather exclaimed, seeing my black eye, “I broke up a bar fight,” I said, “Is that where you went last night, to get in the middle of a bar fight?” he asked, incredulously, “I don’t go around trying to get in fights, I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” I said, “But that’s not why you wanted to talk to us, so why don’t we focus on that.” he stared at me with scrutinizing eyes for a moment, before clearing his throat, “Very well, how has your schooling been going girls?” he asked, “I’m in my third year at King’s College, studying physiotherapy,” Peyton spoke first, “That is outstanding, I am very proud,” my granddad said with a smile, “I have taken a break from school. I decided this when I couldn’t find anything that I wanted to go into. I have spent my time since graduation traveling and learning new things that way,” Holly said, proudly, “Well, that’s rather unconventional, but if that’s what works for you, I am happy for you,” he said less happy, “And you Nicole?” he turned his gaze toward me again, “I haven’t exactly had time for that sir... or money for it,” I admitted, “And what have you been doing instead,” he questioned, “I’ve been working at my--” “At your bar, of course. And how has that been going?” he asked, his patience apparently wearing thin, “It’s going alright,” I shrugged, “And what about your living situation?” he said, “I recently moved in with a couple friends,” I said, “How long have you known them?” he asked, “About a month,” I admitted, “That is completely unacceptable,” he declared, “Sir, if I may cut in. Those two are some of my best mates, they will take good care of her,” Liam said, “Thank you Liam, but that is beside the point,” my grandfather stated, “I was very skeptical to allow you to move out here, but you promised me that you could handle it, and I said I would give you two years to prove that you could do it. It’s been five years Nicole and you have let me down. I talked with Peyton, and you own a rundown bar, have been neglecting your studies, have moved in with some complete strangers, and to top it all off, you look like hell. I absolutely will not allow you to continue living your life like this,” I was thoroughly finished listening to him, “I’m sorry granddad that you don’t approve of the life that I am living, but I refuse to let you come in and try to take control of it. I am twenty two years old, way beyond the age of you telling me what to do. I do agree that so far I’ve done a great job of messing up my life so far, but that is for me to fix. I appreciate your concern, but kindly butt out,” I said, rising from my spot on the floor and leaving.

Harry POV  
I was just reading some tweets on my laptop, when Nicole stormed into the flat, throwing the door open so hard that it slammed against the wall, “Whoa, where’s the fire?” I asked her, she didn’t reply aside from making a sound that sounded like a mixture of a growl and a whine, and curled up in a ball on the other couch. There she remained unmoving. I watched her for a few minutes, only turning my attention to my phone when it vibrated:

Harry  
Did Nicole come back to the flat?  
Liam

I looked back at her:

Liam  
Yeah, what the hell happened?  
Harry

I waited a moment, and then he replied:

Harry  
Family meeting went wrong. Try talking to her and calming her down, she was pretty pissed off when she left. Peyton, Holly, and I are going to the bar to clean up from last night.  
Liam

Liam  
Alright.  
Harry

I was pretty sure I would regret trying to do this, but I took a seat on the couch, “You want to talk about it?” I asked, she didn’t move for a moment, so I thought that she didn’t hear me, but just as I was about to ask again, she shrugged, “C’mon let’s talk, it could help you feel better,” I said, pulling her up into a sitting position. Her face was wet from tears, and she had the makings of a black eye from being hit last night, “What happened?” I asked, she was silent aside from some sniffling. I ran a hand through my hair, “I can’t help you feel better if we don’t talk about it,” I reminded her, she shrugged, wiping the tears from her face. I rested my face on my hand. I didn’t know how to deal with this; I probably should, but I didn’t. I did the only thing I could think to do, pulling out my phone and texting my sister:

Gemma  
Nicole is all upset, but she won’t talk to me, so I can’t help her.  
Harry

I drummed my hand on my knee while I waited for a reply:

Harry   
What did you do to her?  
Gemma

Gemma  
(1/2) I didn’t do anything. She had some sort of family meeting, but when she came back she was really pissed off. She didn’t say anything to me and just curled up on (2/2) the couch, and now she’s crying. I tried getting her to open up, but she is seriously just staring at me.  
Harry

Harry  
(1/4) That’s weird. You were always good to talk to when I was upset... It may be that she is still getting used to everything... You never really gave her much of a (2/4) choice when you told her she was going to move in with you and Lou. Show her she can trust you... Try brewing some coffee and just sit there with her... If she (3/4) gets comfortable enough, she may start talking, but if she doesn’t, sometimes it’s nice just to have someone sit there with you when youre upset... it’s worth a (4/4) try...  
Gemma

I did what she suggested and made coffee, pouring a cup for both Nicole and I once it was done. When I went back to the couch, she hadn’t moved from her spot. I handed her one of the mugs, which she took, holding it in both of her hands as she set it on her knees, “Thank you,” she said, barely audible. We sat there in silence for the longest of time, the only sounds being us drinking our coffee, and her sniffles which were getting softer. I filled up our cups twice before she said anything, “I have to go clean up the bar,” she said, though making no move to get up, “Don’t worry about it, Liam and the girls got it covered,” I said, taking a drink of my coffee, “Where’s Louis?” she asked, “Apparently Niall and Zayn think we’re neglecting them, so the three of them went to a movie,” I said, “Why didn’t you go?” she asked, we weren’t exactly talking about what I had wanted to be talking about, but at least we were going somewhere. I shrugged, “Didn’t really want to see the movie that they were going to see,” I replied, “Oh,” she said, sipping on the coffee. It was quiet again as she found interest in the stitching of the couch cushion, “I walked out on my granddad,” she finally said, “Why?” I asked, “I don’t know,” she admitted, “He made me mad. He was just focusing on all of the things that I’ve messed up with my life. Peyton told him everything that was going on,” she said. Moose chose now to come waltzing in tiredly, probably just waking up from a nap. He walked over to the couch, hopping up in the space in between Nicole and I, she cracked a smile for the first time today, scratching him behind the ear. When she faced me again, her smile dropped, “He doesn’t think I should be living here,” she said after a moment, “Oh,” I said, “I’ve let him down, he hates me,” she said, her eyes welling up with tears. I stood up, going over to where she was and pulling her into my lap, “Hey,” I said, wiping her eyes, “Don’t say that. Your granddad may have said some pretty harsh things, but he ultimately is just trying to look out for you. The only way he can think to do it is to fix your problems for you, cause that’s what he’s used to doing. He loves you.” I said, she shrugged, laying her head against my chest.


	15. Chapter 15

Zayn POV  
The movie was over, so we decided that we were going to check out Harry and Lou’s new flat. When Louis opened the door for us, we saw bartender girl curled up in Harry’s arms, with her dog laying his head in her lap, “Are we interrupting anything?” I asked, they both looked up, seemingly surprised by our entrance. Bartender got up and went to her room, slamming the door. The dog tried to follow, but then started whining when he realized that he couldn’t get in the door, “What happened?” Louis asked as Harry glared at me, “She’s had a pretty rough day, sounds like her family meeting thing didn’t go too well,” he said, “I had just gotten her to open up when you guys decided to show up,” he sighed, “Sorry mate,” I said, genuinely, he shrugged, “It’s whatever,” he said. We talked about the movie for a little while, and then about the fight last night when the dog started pawing at the front door, “What’s wrong with Moose?” Harry asked. Moose! That was its name, “You clearly are a cat person. Normally when a dog paws at a door, it usually wants in or out of some place. In this case, he probably wants outside to use the bathroom,” Louis explained, “Well, does he have a collar and a leash?” Niall said, noticing that he was walking around without either. Both boys shrugged, and then Harry took out his phone.

Harry POV  
I texted Nicole to see if she knew where Moose’s leash was. She didn’t respond; however she came out of her room wearing a pair of sunglasses with both, as well as a bandana. Moose scampered up to her and she put his collar on and then attached the leash to the collar, and finally tied the bandana on under the collar. She began walking for the door, and I followed her out. Seems as though she could use some company today.  
Niall POV  
“So... Ya think they’ll get together?” I asked as they left, “No doubt,” Zayn said without hesitation, “I’m not all that sure. They both seem into each other, but I don’t think Nicole has really had the best life handed to her. She seems to be afraid to get close to either of us, Harry especially. I think it’s good that he is taking his time with her. It’s hard to tell what will happen,” Louis said, “That was deep, man,” Zayn said, I rolled my eyes, “I’m serious though. She’s pretty messed up,” he said, “Whose Nicole?” I asked, “Oh right, Jersey... The bartender girl,” Louis said, “Thought so... Just wanted to be sure,” I said, and the other two laughed at my expense. Pretty soon, I was laughing along.

Harry POV  
We walked in silence until we reached the dog park not too far from the flat. Once there, Nicole let Moose off the leash, “Aren’t you worried that he’ll run off again?” I asked, “Not really, he’s been keeping closer since he fell down the manhole the other day,” she said, watching him play with other dogs, “Sorry about Zayn,” I said, remembering about her locking herself in her room, “It’s whatever, just don’t really like people seeing me all emotional and stuff,” she explained, I nodded in understanding. She pulled out her phone, “Hey Taylor, it’s Nicole. I don’t think I’m going to come out to the bar tonight, I’m not really feeling up to it,” she said. She was quiet for a moment, listening to what Taylor had to say, “Yeah, my face is fine. How was last night, did he give you too much trouble?” she asked, “He didn’t say anything to you at all. I’d be careful, that’s not like him,” she warned, “Alright, yeah. I’ll text Peyton and see if she can cover for me. Sorry, bye” she said, hanging up. She went back to watching Moose interact with other dogs, when he ran toward someone. This person picked him up, and I looked up to see that it was my sister.

Jersey POV  
Gemma Styles came up to us, carrying Moose. She sat beside me, pushing me toward Harry, “Hey guys,” she smiled, “Hey,” I smiled, “Hello Gemma,” Harry said, “What brings you here?” Harry asked, “Seemed like a nice enough day for a walk. I was actually going to swing by the flat, but I guess now I don’t have to,” she said, “Guess not,” he replied. I removed my sunglasses and rubbed my face, “Oh my God, what happened,” she asked, eyeing Harry suspiciously, “I broke up a bar fight,” I said, “Why didn’t you help her?” she accused Harry, “He was kind of in it,” I said, her eyes went wide and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, “He was defending this girl,” I said, “Some scumbag guy was trying to take her home or whatever, and she didn’t want to go, so this dude was trying to force her to go, so Harry stepped in. The other dude threw the first punch. It was pretty awesome. May not have stopped it if it wasn’t happening in my bar. Harry and Lou went ham on them,” I laughed, “Sounds awesome,” Gemma said, mildly amused. Harry seemed relieved that he was out of the line of fire. Moose climbed into my lap and began chewing on my fingers which made me smile, “You have a beautiful smile,” Harry said. My cheeks tinted a little pink at that comment, “You two are literally the cutest,” Gemma cooed.


End file.
